Dictionary

unsightly en · ADJ

Pronunciation

• /ʌnˈsaɪtli/
• (US) audio

Etymology

Etymology tree Proto-Indo-European *né Proto-Indo-European *n̥- Proto-Germanic *un- Proto-West Germanic *un- Old English un- Middle English un- English un- English sightly English unsightly From un- + sightly.

Meanings

1. Displeasing to the eye.
   • “She had grown used to the quick speech of these people, but she wished he would not lick his lips that way. It did not make him any harder to understand, but it was unsightly." 1992, Robert Jordan, “Chapter 38: Hidden Faces”, in The Shadow Rising (The Wheel of Time; 4), London: Orbit Books, published 2021, →ISBN, page 610:
   • Last year, the City Council passed my bill, the Rat Act (Int. 1123), to expand containerization citywide and finally get those unsightly heaps of trash bags off our sidewalks. 2026 April 17, Crystal Hudson, quotee, “Mayor Mamdani Takes Major Step Toward Citywide Trash Containerization, Announces Six New Districts”, in NYC.gov, archived from the original on 03 Jul 2026:
   • The removal of unsightly graffiti on the sides of railway bridges spanning major roads in the North West is to be handed over to National Highways, to speed up the job. 2021 October 20, “Network News: NR and NH tackle graffiti vandalism”, in RAIL, number 942, page 9:

Forms

Antonyms

beautiful · sightly

Deriveds

unsightliness

Synonyms

disgusting · ugly

Translations (29)

ro inestetic (displeasing to the eye) · ro dizgrațios (displeasing to the eye) · sv gräslig (displeasing to the eye) · it inguardabile (displeasing to the eye) · la turpis (displeasing to the eye) · fi ruma (displeasing to the eye) · fi rumannäköinen (displeasing to the eye) · sk nevkusný (displeasing to the eye) · nl onooglijk (displeasing to the eye) · sv anskrämlig (displeasing to the eye) · bg грозен (displeasing to the eye) · gmq-jmk ljøt (displeasing to the eye) · fr disgracieux (displeasing to the eye) · sa अश्रीर (displeasing to the eye) · fi epämiellyttävän näköinen (displeasing to the eye) · fr inesthétique (displeasing to the eye) · cs nevzhledný (displeasing to the eye) · cmn 難看 /难看 (displeasing to the eye) · is óásjálegur (displeasing to the eye) · mi haruharu (displeasing to the eye) · sk nepekný (displeasing to the eye) · bg противен (displeasing to the eye) · ru непригля́дный (displeasing to the eye) · it antiestetico (displeasing to the eye) · ja 目障り (displeasing to the eye) · sv ful (displeasing to the eye) · pt antiestético (displeasing to the eye) · es antiestético (displeasing to the eye) · sk nevzhľadný (displeasing to the eye)